1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to simulation systems, more particularly to electronic warfare (EW) simulation systems, and even more specifically, to the issue of aligning laboratory EW simulation systems.
2. Related Art
Electronic warfare (EW) simulation systems in a laboratory must be aligned. These simulation systems may typically include multiple signal sources (such as, e.g., but not limited to, modulated microwave synthesizers), in which each of these signal sources may be capable of producing time-interleaved microwave pulses of different frequencies and modulation characteristics, so as to emulate the signal characteristics of a multiplicity of radar emitters. The simulation systems may be arranged to output similar RF signals on multiple channels, with controlled differences in specific parameters between channels.
Such systems must be aligned in order to ensure that the signals these systems produce, on each channel, are accurately calibrated, with respect to each other and with respect to absolute standards, across a wide range of frequency and attenuation. Conventionally, with current technology, these systems are typically aligned in amplitude (RF Power) only, and are not aligned to maintain specific phase relationships from channel to channel. Even so, the conventional alignment process is a time-consuming, tedious operation, and it is not at all uncommon to get reports from users that they spend more time aligning, than they do using, these systems.
There is now an emerging need for improved EW simulation systems. It would be desirable that an EW simulation system be capable of producing microwave signal characteristics with known phase relationships between signal sources. This need implies that the alignment problem, already time-consuming and tedious to the extent that it is a significant impediment to system operation, must be extended to somehow support alignment of phase across frequency. What is needed then is an improved EW simulation system capable of overcoming shortcomings of conventional solutions.